(NOT APPLICABLE)
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The present invention relates to a casino poker game and, more particularly, to a card game providing multiple-hand competition with competition and proposition wagers.
Multiple-hand poker games are currently in play in casinos. An example of such a game is so-called Pai Gow poker, which may also be played in a card room environment. The game was originally based on Chinese Dominoes or Pai Gow, and the common card version may also be known as Asian Poker or Double Hand. Double Hand may be played as a player banked game with the bank moving in rotation or as a house banked game with a fixed banker also being the dealer. Double Hand is usually played with a Joker included in a 53-card deck, with the Joker being used in a straight or in a flush or as an A{grave over (c)}e.
At Double Hand, each player makes a wager, then the player and dealer each receive seven cards. Each player forms a five-card poker hand and a two-card poker hand, with the 5-card hand being superior to the two-card hand. In the two-card hand, only Pairs and High cards are of value, whereas in the 5-card hand, all poker hands are possible. The player hands are compared to the dealer hands. A player winning both hands is paid 1 to 1 on the wager. A player winning one hand and losing one hand pushes the wager, and a player losing both hands loses the wager. The house advantage is generated by two means. Firstly, a commission is paid on player winnings; secondly, any copy hand is deemed as won by the house.
There are a number of problems with Double Hand operation. For example, collection of commission is time-consuming and may result in errors. Moreover, setting the dealer hand the house way is complex and error prone for a novice dealer. Hand setting is also complex and intimidating for novice players. There are certain rituals regarding selecting the first player to be dealt to and dealing to absent player positions that slow down the game. Additionally, there is a very high proportion of push decisions, and due to the initially dealt 7-card hands, the game is restricted to six players.
It would thus be desirable to provide a simplified multiple-hand poker game that improves upon existing games and is desirable to both players and casinos.
In the triple hand poker game according to the present invention, after making one or more wagers, the players and dealer each receive a hand of five cards and create three hands being a two-card HIGH hand, a two-card MID hand, and a one-card LOW hand. In one wagering embodiment, each player places one wager. If the player wins two or three of the hands, then the wager wins. If the player loses two or three of the hands, then the wager is lost. In another wagering embodiment, the player places three equal wagers being one on each of the respective hands.
In each wagering embodiment, the high frequency of push hands in the previous Double Hand game is eliminated. Moreover, there is no commission paid on winnings as the house advantage is within the copy. The copy occurs more frequently in the Double Hand game in the two-card hand than the 5-card hand. In the triple hand game according to the invention, there are two possible two-card copy hands and one much more possible one-card copy hand. Copy rules may be varied to create different house advantages.
Additionally, there are at least two possible proposition wager options. A COPY wager is a wager that at least one copy hand will result between the player and the dealer. Either the payoff increases as the number of copy hands increases, providing different payoffs, or there is a composite payoff. Additionally, a PAIR wager is a wager that the player hand will include at least one pair with a payoff increasing as the total poker hand rank increases, or there is a composite payoff.
In still another feature of the invention, a hand not being played by a player is designated as a Dragon Hand, and a player with a hand may also wager on the Dragon Hand against the dealer hand. Alternatively, the dealer may have as many as three hands that the player can wager against. These additional options are more viable at Triple Hand according to the present invention where hand setting is more fixed than at the previous Double Hand game. Moreover, knowledge of other cards is less relevant at Triple Hand according to the present invention.
In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, in a method of playing a card game, a plurality of cards are dealt to a player and a dealer. The player and dealer each form three hands with the plurality of cards corresponding to a HIGH hand, a MID hand, and a LOW hand. A game result is determined by comparing the player HIGH, MID and LOW hands with the respective dealer hands. In a preferred embodiment, five cards are dealt to each of the player and the dealer, and the hands include a two-card HIGH hand, a two-card MID hand, and a one-card LOW hand. The manner of forming the dealer hands can be practiced according to predetermined hand-forming rules. For example, with a hand of two pair, the HIGH hand is a HIGH PAIR, the MID hand is a LOW PAIR, and the LOW hand is an odd card; with a hand of one pair, the HIGH hand is a PAIR, the MID hand contains a high card and a low card, and the LOW hand is an odd card; and with a hand of no pair, the HIGH hand is a highest card and a lowest card, the MID hand is a second highest card and a second lowest card, and the LOW hand is a third highest card. In an alternative xe2x80x9cno pairxe2x80x9d hand-forming rule, the HIGH hand is a highest card and a second lowest card, the MID hand is a second highest card and a lowest card, and the LOW hand is a third highest card. The HIGH hand typically must be better than the MID hand, and the MID hand typically must be better than the LOW hand.
In one arrangement, only pairs and high cards have rank value. Alternatively, a two-card straight flush, a two-card straight, a two-card flush, pairs and high cards have rank value.
Prior to dealing the cards, a competition wager may be received from the player on the game result. By placing the competition wager, the player is wagering that at least two of the player HIGH, MID and LOW hands will beat the dealer""s respective hands according to the comparison of the respective hands. In this context, the method may including paying a payout of 1 to 1 if at least two of the player HIGH, MID and LOW hands beat the dealer""s respective hands. In an alternative operating mode, three separate wagers are received from the player, including a HIGH hand wager, a MID hand wager, and a LOW hand wager, wherein the method includes paying a payout for each player hand that beats the dealer""s respective hands. Each of these payouts may also be 1 to 1. With the three separate wagers, preferably, the HIGH hand wager, the MID hand wager, and the LOW hand wager are equal amounts.
The player may also place a proposition wager for a peripheral event during the card game. In one operating mode, the peripheral event includes at least one occurrence of a copy hand between the player and the dealer. A variable payout may be paid based on a number of copy hands between the player and the dealer. The peripheral event may additionally or alternatively include at least one occurrence of a pair in the player""s hands. A similar variable payout may be paid based on a number of pairs in the player""s hands.
In still another feature of the invention, the player may place a side wager on at least one Dragon Hand. An additional plurality of cards are dealt and at least one Dragon Hand is correspondingly formed into three hands with the plurality of cards corresponding to a HIGH hand, a MID hand, and a LOW hand. A Dragon Hand game result is determined by comparing the at least one Dragon Hand HIGH, MID and LOW hands with either the respective dealer hands or the respective player hands. The side wager is then resolved according to the Dragon Hand game result.
Copy hands between the player and dealer may be resolved as a player loss. Multiple copy hands between the player and the dealer may alternatively be resolved as a player win of all copy hands.
In still another operating mode, if the player five cards form a poker rank such as a flush or better, the game is resolved by declaring the player as an automatic winner of all three hands.